Thanatos' Scribe
by Luckywild
Summary: A young woman's death, a terrible accident, was a choice by the Fates who want to restore Death to his former self. Can Lana be strong enough against Thanatos or will she be dimmed out into nothing like so many of his minions before her? Throw in the Shadowed, a being of evil who brings unnecessary death, and the Guardians who turn against Death as if he were the one at fault.
1. Chapter 1

Rise of the Guardians

Thanatos' Scribe

Chapter One

In every living thing, that breathed and aged and grew, there was one consistent, constant fear that some had early on, or reached at its end. This fear was sometimes met with dignity, other times met with pleas and bargaining.

Death was a silent part of the living. At the end of every life, from small, insignificant creatures, to the larger, smarter beings, Death had no discrimination. He wandered, seeking the dying to take their last breathes and set them free from their physical form to go wherever it was that that being needed or wanted to go.

Death came in many names, many forms. He was always feared, always known and yet never seen until it was too late. His cruelty was pronounced, the more along his path he traveled. Left alone to his own devices, his mind slowly began to warp. From the beginning, Death was once a kind and gentle being, forgiving and careful.

But alone, for lifetimes after lifetimes, in the silence of nothingness and vainly forgotten to avoid the terror that came at the end of life, Death was left by his own self, his own mind, his own thoughts. Dangerous to begin with, his pain began to eat away at his sanity until he craved suffering and despair and most importantly, fear. It gave him a moment of bliss, of feeling something other than crippling loneliness.

There were a few lives that he saved, those who he chose to be his followers, his deliverers. So few managed for long and those who did, became monsters that he destroyed without a thought. He kept them away from him, unknowingly afraid of them as well as knowingly disgusted by them. All of them chose to follow him to save them from death, no other reasons given.

Until the ladies of Fate intervened and brought to him, unknowingly, a life that could not be broken.

Everything was fuzzy, filled with pain. The girl struggled to look over, crying softly. Her cinnamon hair was coated liberally in blood, having suffered severe head trauma. Her only thought was of the other girl next to her. "Helene.." Her voice was hoarse.

Helene had her eyes opened, filled with terror and pain. Both of them were badly injured, their vehicle crushed and therefore, crushing them. Helena, who was the exact look-a-like of her twin, was gasping, tears forming.

There was a shadow that passed over the girl as she turned weakly. She faced the man, tall, thin, pale, and dark-eyed, whose emotionless face revealed nothing.

"Do you wish to live?"

It was such a simple question as the girl tried to answer.

"Only one may live. The other must go."

Helene was openly crying at this time. The girl turned toward her sister, remembering how beloved she was, how popular, and wonderful she was. That she was already on a road toward happiness while she still floundered about, trying to figure out exactly where she would stand when she had no ground of which to stand on.

She turned, her blue-gray eyes clear with her decision. "Take mine."

His eyes barely widened.

"Lana…" Her sister gurgled, blood oozing out of her mouth.

"Take my life. Let her live. She has a future."

Death stared at her, her eyes free of fear and pain, full of determination and love.

"As you wish." His hand reached down and as the sirens grew loudly as the ambulance, Lana breathed her last breath as her sister screamed in pain.

She had to rest for a while, unable to do anything. Unlike the others, Death kept her close, watching her silently. He only left once, about a week later, and came back to her as she was vainly trying to move.

She looked up at the man who resided in the armchair, eyes brooding. She managed to her feet, wobbly at best. She fell to her knees as she winced.

Lana's eyes moved up to his hand where she paled when she recognized what he held. Her sister's necklace, the same that she wore that the two had bought together when they were merely children.

"No."

Her eyes moved to meet his as he stared her down. "How could you? You said she would live!"

"She did. Until she took her own life." He stood up and threw the necklace to her lap. "Some are not as strong as you think, woman."

Lana slowly picked up the necklace. "Helene… no…why did you do that? You had so much wonderful things going for you…" Her eyes filled with tears. "Is she all right now?"

"She killed herself. There is no good place for that." He spoke, his voice clipped.

"I don't understand…"

"To bring your own death is to underhand my power and the Fates. She is now lost in purgatory, never to return."

She cried out as she crumbled. "Helene…!"

"If it helps," His voice was cold. "She felt no pain."

Death left her as Lana sobbed, her hand fisted with the necklace. "My sister… oh, god, Helene… no…"

Lana never recovered. Her sister's suicide rested on her shoulders like a heavy burden, the guilt eating her inside. Once Lana was recovered physically, she was trained to be Death's minion, to do his bidding when he was too busy with other deaths. She handled the weak, the elderly, the terminal, the ones whose time simply ended. She watched him do his work silently, hating how cruel he was, how emotionless he was to their pain and suffering.

Lana didn't have it in her to be cruel like Death. So she was soft-spoken, gentle, sweet. She waited out the dying before guiding them gently to the gate to the Fates, where their new beginning would start. Those who saw her, who dealt with her, never feared her.

They feared the shadow behind her, the silent, large being with hollow eyes. She outright ignored Death from time to time, doing her job as carefully as she always was. Lana returned to Death's home in the dark abyss of nothingness, where little grew and even littler had light.

For all of his cruelty, for his harsh personality, Death kept her closer to him, unable to really relinquish her. He surmised that she did a good job, even though not in the way he did it. But it was appreciated and as Lana never seemed to be touched by the taint of darkness that was all around, she was deemed fit to continue what she was to do per his bidding.

Lana was in the massive library, trying to find something to read that wasn't dark and dreary. She found a book of fairytales as she started to open it.

She felt the rustle of air and the sensation of being watched. She turned to see Death watching her. He did this often, as if to bother her.

She found that Death didn't bother her like he wanted to do. She smiled at him and waved the book. "Want me to read it to you?"

"No." He didn't move from his spot.

She walked closer carefully, to his side. He didn't like it when he was directly approached so she moved from the side until she was a few feet away from him.

She hesitated only momentarily. "Can I call you something?"

"You can call me Master."

She frowned at him. "Lana. My name is Lana. What's yours?"

"I have none."

"No, you have many names. What is the one you want me to call you?"

His eyes were piercing as there was a heavy moment of silence.

"Thanatos. You can call me Thanatos."

"That's great! You can call me Lana.. You know, instead of 'woman'."

He snorted and turned away. "Read at your own will and be silent."

Lana did read, pushing her hair over to rest over a single shoulder. Her finger twirled a strand as she lost herself in the fairytales, desperate to read some light in the world of darkness.

She resided with the man she now called Thanatos. She had her own wing, her own place that she decorated with bright and sunny colors. He never ventured anywhere near her so she assumed he cared nothing for her work or for her.

Lana didn't like one thing, however, and it was looking into the mirror. For all aspects, she remained the same. Slightly round face, with richly-hued Caucasian skin with moderately long cinnamon colored hair. She had a three-beaded barrette, colored blue-gray to match her eyes, on each side of her bangs, pulling them back to curl over her ears.

That wasn't what bothered her. It was seeing the blue lining on her body. It formed into partial squares upon her cheeks, followed down the main arteries of her body and across her hands and knuckles, all the way down her feet and heels.

It was his power, that was in place to control her should she ever do anything to displease him. She hadn't so far but she had seen him use it with another one of his minions. It was torture, plain and simple. So she hated it, wishing she did not bear such markings but he seemed as if he needed to control others so she let him do so. After all, she had agreed to death and for it, became a part of his legion.

It took her a while to learn something else about the markings. It changed colors with her emotions. At first, she was overcome in grief and shock of her death and the loss of her beloved twin, and then as time wove on, she began to adapt to her surroundings, to fit in enough that she felt comfortable again. It was actually a lot easier than she expected. She was rarely happy and even more rarely angry, not in her personality to be truly angry.

But she could be happy. When she lost herself in the fairytales, of uplifting stories, her mood was lifted and warmed. As such, the blue markings changed to a gold coloring, shining with the good emotion.

She discovered this by accident, as she was reading in the near dark and laughing softly to herself until the light was bright enough to be distracting. Looking into the vanity mirror, she stared with surprise at the change. It was different, warmer, happier. She felt better and since she learned of this adaptation, she sought to continue that feeling.

It never dawned on her that what she felt was transferred to Thanatos, whose confusion at feeling a foreign happiness was unnerving for him. He didn't know it was her for he was still too enriched in his own pain to realize it. So the two resided together, unaware of each other's marking on the other and how carefully, slowly, and very subtly, change was set in motion.

It was time, after a long period of nothingness, for danger to start to lurk. The Guardians were happily working toward making children happy. Keeping up the wonder and life and laughter. But there was a strangeness in the air that was disturbing North, who looked to the skies that seemed just a little bit darker than usual. He was outside, exercising the reindeer as several elves were preparing their food.

"Something is wrong," North mused. He turned to the coming night sky, where the moon was already visible. "Manny, what is wrong here?"

The Man in the Moon was silent. Whatever it was, wasn't something the Man in the Moon dealt with. That bothered North even more. He turned and reentered his home, tapping his beard as he tried to think.

Phil appeared at his side, always willing to listen to his friend. North finally noticed the Yeti as North spun around.

"What is in the air? Is there danger or something else? I can't tell."

Phil shrugged and looked upward and around. He ran his hand through his hair as he spoke in his garbled tongue.

"Is it what?" North was utterly confused. "An deity?"

Phil spoke louder.

"Entity?"

Phil pointed up to the window where the moon was visible.

"No, Manny doesn't seem to know."

Phil looked completely surprised. North shrugged at the Yeti. "Is strange, yes. It feels wrong but I cannot say why."

The wind burst in suddenly as the Tooth Fairy entered, frazzled. "North! North!"

"What is it, Toothy?"

Tooth held out a tooth, small and insignificant. "There's something leaking into the memories of children! There's something wrong with Death."

"What?"

"A bad memory is reoccurring in the memories of these children. Deaths that shouldn't be happening! Someone is doing it wrong and we need to do something!"

"We cannot even see Death!"

"No but we can see his minions."

"Are you sure?"

Tooth nodded. "I have seen a few of them. Not often but a couple in the span of a century. If we can capture one, we can get answers."

"But.. Are you sure it is Death?"

"There have been too many disasters happening. What looks to be natural isn't by man but by something supernatural. Not only that but there seems to be something more… I'm not familiar enough with Death to know what that is but we've all seen Death at one point in our lives and there has been something bad brewing for a long time."

"Is not doing his job right?" North asked, hushed.

"I'm not sure if it's him or one of his. Does it really matter? They're all the same, anyways!" Tooth shuddered in fear. "To cause death is their wish! We need to do something! We may protect the children but how can we protect the children if they die?"

"Not all die!"

"Well, a lot of people have been dying!"

"We will look into it, Tooth," North said soothingly. He really didn't want to, though. He, like all others, feared Death and his power, opting to leave him alone.

They never realized that had been the start of the problem. A problem now much too big to deal with.


	2. Chapter 2

Rise of the Guardians

Thanatos' Scribe

Chapter Two

Lana was dreaming again, lost in the past as she was reliving bits and pieces of happiness. This time around, she was around five years old and had just started kindergarten and was having a blast with the first few days. Not as outgoing as her twin sister, Helene, who already made a best friend on the first day, Lana was content to play alone and watch the world.

Helene wouldn't have none of that. "Lana! Come push me on the swings!" Helene and Lana were exact copies but while Lana had her hair braided, Helene had it down. It was their mother's idea to help the two be distinguished as they were still young enough to be dressed exact, for it to be a cute and endearing thing, so that the different hair styles would help the teachers separate the two.

It didn't occur to the mother that the personalities were vastly different.

Helene tugged on a long sleeve. "Come on! Come on! It'll be fun!"

"Okay," Lana trailed after her as she listened to Helene talk. "It was fun this morning, huh? I painted Mama and Papa but I didn't get to see yours."

"I painted stars."

"Stars?" Helene giggled. "Mama says you have a head in the sky."

"Stars are pretty."

"Uh huh… hey, a free swing!"

"You want to go first?" Lana asked Helene who looked happy. Helene threw up her hands and climbed onto the swing seat as Lana struggled to push her.

"Kick your legs!" Lana informed her loudly, as Helene was finally swinging and laughing loudly.

"It's so fun!" Helene was weaving up and down, faster and higher until her grip slackened as she caught sight of the moving ground.

"Oh, no!" Helene stumbled out of the swing, high as she fell hard into the sawdust. She began to cry loudly as Lana teared up too, trying to soothe Helene.

"It hurts!" Helene was holding an elbow, a deep cut making her bleed. "Mama! Mama!"

"What happened?!" A teacher was hurried along as someone near by suddenly shouted.

"Lana shoved her!"

"Yea! She pushed her!"

"I didn't! I was pushing her to swing!" Lana protested loudly.

Helene was in no state to stand up for her sister as the teacher gently took her away. Lana, alone in the playground as children glared at her, began to sniffle.

"I didn't push her! I didn't want to hurt her!"

"It's your fault!" Lana was shoved from behind onto the ground as a older boy kicked at her. "You're a bad sister!"

"I'm not a bad sister!"

"Bad sister! Bad sister! Bad sister!"

Lana began to sob out loud as another teacher ran out and shouted at the children as she tugged Lana up and to the nurse's office.

"I'm sorry, Helene." Lana was sobbing loudly, even more than Helene.

"What's wrong!?" Helene was distraught, her arm bandaged as she was waiting for their mother to come pick her up.

"I'm a bad sister!" Lana stuttered, sobbing even louder. "I pushed you!"

"No, you didn't," Helene tried to shout over her. "Who said that?!"

"Everyone!"

Their mother entered and was instantly wrapped in two sets of arms. "Oh, Helene.. Are you alright?" Her mother knelt down to face her eldest daughter.

Lana was sniffling as her mother drew her near as well. "Lana, what's wrong?"

"Everyone said it was her fault! They called her a bad sister!" Helene was indignant. "I fell! I was too high! Tell her she's not bad!"

"Lana, honey." Her mother drew her into her arms. "Such a sensitive soul. I know you could never hurt your sister. You're not a bad sister."

"Then why did they say it?"

"Because sometimes people can be wrong." Her mother said simply. "Here, let's take Helene to the hospital and we can relax at home afterwards."

Helene took one side while Lana took the other side. Both held onto their mother the same way, leaving school as Lana glanced back.

Lana became aware of something, looking back as she saw the shadow loom upward and over her. Her memory, her dream was resetting itself as her sister and mother disappeared and Lana stood face to face with the tall, monstrous darkness. Eyes opened that were familiar to her upon this monster but she couldn't place them.

"Lana…"

Lana awoke sharp and painfully, her name echoing in her head as she wondered why the voice was so familiar. It was filled with pain and darkness and for a second, she thought it might have been Thanatos.

But as she left the wing and fumbled around in the dark, she came upon him asleep on the armchair in front of the dying fire. She approached carefully until she was close enough to notice something.

From afar, all of his features were black. But closer, his hair was a dark brown. Even closer, his skin didn't seem so pale. Lana found that odd as she finally noticed one final thing.

Thanatos was shivering, as if cold. She hurried out and came back with a blanket and carefully tucked him in. She pulled away and hesitated before her hand came up slowly.

It shook and then stilled, an inch away from his head before she very gently brushed his bangs back. She was surprised to feel that he was warm-skinned, having convinced herself that as Death, he must be lifeless in some way.

And he wasn't. That took her aback as she hurried out of the room, blushing for no good reason as she returned to her wing and bed, tucking herself in tightly as she suddenly remembered she had been dreaming about something that was important.

But she couldn't remember it at all as she fell back asleep, this worry forgotten the next time she would awake.

The morning came, seemingly a little brighter, those Lana had no explanation for this for there was no sun in the abyss.

She bathed and dressed, coming to the kitchen to find the table piled in food and two places set. Lana didn't say anything, though she was surprised as Thanatos never set anything for her.

Unless it wasn't him. She wondered if he had hidden servants of some sort.

The instant Lana sat down, Thanatos walked in, big as always in movement and strength. What took her aback this time was that he had his hood down and his hair pulled back into a low ponytail.

Though his hair could've had always been in that ponytail, it was that she'd never seen him without his cloak. She saw the same features that she had spied the night before, her face turning red as she dropped her eyes to her plate and began to hurriedly eat.

It was still early as the two left Death's lair. Outside, the skies were near-pitch black, dots of light resembling stars above but they moved and danced, like falling comets. The ground was lush with a very dark green grass that was thick to the touch, cushioning each step as the two slowly walked down the only path away and to the home of Death.

He opened a door at the beginning of the path, the sunlight blinding as the door disappeared as it opened and they were revealed to be somewhere bright and warm on Earth. Lana fiddled with her cloak as Thanatos donned his hood and became blacked out by heavy shadowing.

"Am I go to with you this time?" She asked him quietly, not wanting to disturb his thoughts, as he seemed to be thinking heavily.

"No. Go as you will. I will fetch you when the time ends."

"As you wish, Thanatos," Lana nodded as Thanatos took a few steps and disappeared from view, fading like a forgotten memory. Lana slowly lifted her left hand as a paper unrolled to reveal a list of names of the soon to be departed.

The deaths were all natural, most of old age, one of cancer. The saddest one came from a little baby who was simply not strong enough to survive, having been born far too early. Lana watched the infant boy's mother stroke his hand with tears falling as the doctor was talking very softly to her and her husband, who had his back turned, unable to look at his son.

Lana smiled down at the very small child. Her own tears fell, a sadness filling her as her blue markings grew into a ice blue, her sadness growing in her chest as her head lifted slowly to look into the mother's eyes, who was looking up at her without realizing that she was looking into someone but rather the mother's eyes were hallow and distant, her turmoil written upon her face.

"He knows he is loved," Lana told her, knowing how fruitless it was to talk to a living person. "Please remember how much you loved him, no matter how short your time with him was. He will come back to you, I would think, if the Fates were kind."

Lana's hand touched the mother's face, whose gaze was still distant. Her eyes widened slightly at the strangeness of warmth before her gaze dropped and she reached into the incubator with a sob.

Lana watched as the mother held her lifeless child in her arms, sobbing and shouting in grief and disbelief. Lana opened her left hand slowly, the itty bitty butterfly keeping close to her, not knowing where to go.

She turned as the wide double doors opened as she lifted the butterfly. It took a moment to realize the baby's soul would not leave her, unable to find his way in. So she entered slowly, learning at that moment she truly could enter into the Next.

"Hello?" Her voice called out, as she held the soul in her palms, close to her chest. "He was going to get lost. I'm sorry to intrude."

"One does not intrude upon these sacred sanctuaries." The woman slipped into view. She was a translucent, with bare blue eyes and ice blond hair. She was young looking, despite the ageless job she had to work at. As she appeared, her body eloped into two more, all the same, though with different colored eyes. She had ice blue, the one on her left had green, and the one on the right had brown.

"We are the Fates, those who look upon the dead and death." A slender hand lifted from the shining white cloak sleeve as she wiggled a single finger and the tiny butterfly trembled in the air, attempting to make his way to the Fates. It was slipping downward as Lana reached out with open palms, catching the butterfly gingerly.

"He's not strong." Lana was apologetic.

"Very few are," Fate told her. "Bring him here."

Lana hesitated and carefully made her way to the Fates. Unable to look up into the woman's eyes, she held out her hands and opened them, the butterfly resting on her cupped palms.

"Do you fear us?"

"No."

"Then why not look?"

"I don't wish to insult."

"There is no insult. Very few can enter here, very few souls are strong, that you are so willing to help says a great deal of good about you."

Lana slowly looked up into shining eyes of power. They slowly swirled and lessened in the lights from Fate's gaze as the woman smiled at her.

"You want to ask something."

Lana pulled away, tears coming to her. "I.. I shouldn't."

"The death of your sister is heavy upon your shoulders. One's actions are those of their own doings."

"But she did it because of me. Because I chose to die and she to live. I thought that.." Lana struggled to speak. "That she had so much more for her, to grow old, to be happy and loved and have a family. Why? I keep asking myself why? Is there no other recourse for her? Is she truly lost?"

"One can be lost… but they can be found," Fate said quietly. "Just as the dead come here to be found, so can a life."

Lana was confused as she turned suddenly. The shadows loomed, cloaking in freezing temperatures. Death could not enter but it could lurk at its entrance of the Next. But Lana was becoming more confused.

"That's not Thanatos, is it?" She turned to the Fates. "Is it one of his minions?"

"I do not know." Fate pulled away. "You must go before he becomes too angry. He is unpredictable and capable of great, torturing pain."

"I should!" Lana agreed hurriedly, turning as she literally ran out of the Next and into darkness. For a moment, she thought of that lingering death at the heels of the Fates but then her entire body went rigid in violent rage.

"You left!"

Lana could not retort or give an explanation. Thanatos didn't allow her as his power surged as she gave in and screamed in pain. It cut off sharply as she fell in a heap, her body shutting down as blackness covered her, her mind going blank.

She awoke in coldness, despite that she lay in a bed made for a king. She pushed up and started to shiver violently. Her clumsy hands pushed the bedding off as she staggered off the bed and fell onto her knees and hands, her stomach churning as pain threatened to swallow her whole.

"Why? I was doing what you wanted… would you have wanted that infant soul to be lost forever?" Lana slowly lifted her eyes to Thanatos, anger flaring. "I had to help him! That's what I'm supposed to do! I didn't leave, I wouldn't leave!"

She couldn't get up, stuck on her hands and knees. Tears fell. "I don't care what you do with me. I saved him, that's all that matters."

"Is that what you think? We save souls?"

Her eyes looked into his, defiant. "Yes. Death doesn't have to be cruel or painful. It can be peaceful, welcoming."

She slowly crawled to the bed, trying to pull herself up. She was wheezing through her nose, pain still rolling through her limbs. "Death.. Isn't something to be feared…" She managed to stand, struggling to talk. "It should be kind and gentle and loving. So many are afraid, why should they be?"

Lana turned toward Thanatos. "Weren't you ever afraid of Death?"

Lana saw something in his eyes and instinctively took a step toward him. His arm swiped, her markings turning into blue fire as she screamed on the onslaught of pain, ridden on confusion and depression.

Lana collapsed, dead to the world as her body randomly twitched as Thanatos slowly lowered his arm, his eyes wide and his chest was moving fast and shallow. He approached her cautiously as if expecting her to grab him before he gingerly picked her up and laid her in the bed.

His hand rested on her arm, the warmth of her skin suddenly welcomed. His eyes stared as his skin seemed to lighten, become more human in appearance instead of looking blue and cold. Thanatos yanked his hand away in fright, looking at the woman and unable to leave yet unable to approach.

"What… what is she doing?" His shallow whisper filled the room, as shadows pranced around him as he crumbled onto the floor.


	3. Chapter 3

Rise of the Guardians

Thanatos' Scribe

Chapter Three

"Lana! Lana! Wake up!" The young woman blinked out grit from her eyes, the haunting touch of a severe biting cold disappearing as she shifted and pushed up off the couch in their parents' living room. Helene was prancing around with glee. "You're awake! Yes! I was so worried you wouldn't!"

"I was just sleeping," Lana mumbled, rubbing at her eyes with irritation. Her teeth were chattering as her twin sister beamed at her. "What?"

"I'm so glad to finally have you here, I missed you so much, Lana!" Helene flung herself around Lana, hugging her tightly. As quickly as she was hugged, Helene was gone and dancing around the room. "Come on, let's go!"

"Go? Where?" Lana tried to stand up on her legs, but they were heavy like lead, her mind was captured in a dense fog, and she was trying to remember something. Something about brown eyes and dark hair. But there was something else in her mind, something that was very foreign, frightening. "My head hurts.."

Her head dropped in her hand as she peered up weakly to Helene whose eyes became sad and pained. There was a sound of a violent crash, screams, and pain wracked through Lana as she cried out.

"Lana.. I'm so sorry…" Helene looked to her, eyes spilling with tears. "Why, Lana? Why?"

"Why… why, what? Helene.. What's wrong?"

Helene's eyes dried up as her jaw tightened. Her blue-gray eyes turned black as she opened her mouth and screamed, everything around the two shattering like torn fabric, shadows forming from the shredded reality. Her scream grew only louder, filled with rage and desperation.

"Helene!" Lana reached out with a shout and found herself tumbling out of her bed in the home of Death. Her face planted to the ground, she couldn't breathe for a moment and when she could, her heart throbbed with deep, tearing emotional pain.

It took a longer moment to remember that attack that Thanatos' did, her body still hurting, the lining along her body burning with residual surges. She should've been afraid, terrified by the power of Death.

But she knew, just knew deep down, he reacted with fear and because of that, she was angry. You didn't have to attack when you were afraid, you could always just face it. She staggered to her feet and stumbled out the bedroom into the dark and looming hallway. It seemed like a longer trek than usual to get to where the living room was at, where she would find Thanatos.

She entered and was about to yell, to scream, to do something when she collapsed onto her knees and her sister's necklace fell off her person and in front of her. She stared at it, remembering the strange nightmare.

Lana started blindly at the necklace, acutely aware of the memory of her sister, so deeply saddened but she had been so angry about something Lana didn't understand. All she could remember was asking 'why?' and Helene never answering her.

It took a moment to see Thanatos' feet in front of her. "I hate you," Lana didn't mean it entirely but she was too angry to care at that particular moment. "I did nothing to you and you attacked me. Is that why you kill your minions? Because of slights that your mind makes up? If you want to get rid of me, then do it now before you hurt me again! I chose to be with you, you know, I sacrificed my life! Does that mean nothing to Death? Or do you think you're above it all?"

His eyes stared down, black and cold.

She met his frozen gaze with heated emotion. "You're … you're.. a bully, that's what you are! You don't get what you want, you don't understand something? You attack it instead of even trying! What is your deal?!"

"I do as I want, as I will, and as I should."

"Two of the three, that's all that is true. That last part, however, is surely not!" She grasped her necklace and surged up, her energy filling out, with her feeling relieved that it was doing so. She planted her feet apart and faced Thanatos face on. "You don't do as you should! You're cruel, hateful, painful! Death is supposed to bring peace, whether you die in your sleep or some monster shoots you. When bad things happen, Death should come gently, soothingly. Why do you like so much fear when you, yourself, is so terrified."

Thanatos's eyes hardened as he raised his arm threateningly. "Watch what you say, you serve me, not the other way around!"

Her jaw tightened as she loomed at him, leaning toward him with a glare. "Hit me. I know you want to."

Thanatos' face twisted. "Do not tempt me, child!"

"I am not a child! I am an adult, a person, a living being!"

"You are DEAD!"

"I'm alive in a matter of speaking," Lana said dismissively. "You do not have to attack me! I didn't leave, I was doing my damn job! Far better than you, by the way!" She added snidely and as she expected, she felt his hand move quickly as she dodged his slap. "Bully! Bully! I spent my entire childhood surrounded by them and you, sir, are the biggest one I have ever had the misfortune to know!"

His hand had fallen and fisted as he glowered at her.

"I. Didn't. Leave. If you paid attention to all the good that I do, maybe you wouldn't be so quick to retaliate against me, to hurt me. I know you don't want to."

"You don't know what I want."

"I know you reacted with fear when I asked you if you feared Death."

"I -AM- Death!"

"As always?"

His jaw worked, unwilling to answer.

"You were like me once, human, living. What made you so cold?"

His eyes turned bright with power. "They did. All of them."

"Who is 'they'?"

"The world. Everyone fears Death, runs from it, hides from it. They blind themselves so that I am not seen, not heard, not felt, not experienced. And in the end, they seek not me but what lay beyond my touch. Why should I be kind to those who are not kind to me?"

"Because it's the right thing to do."

"So?"

"It's karma, Thanatos. What goes around, comes around. You treat others as you want to be treated. I can't guarantee that all of the world will do it because I know what it's like to be nice to others and yet be treated cruelly. Even still, I try each and every day to be better than those who don't think I can be."

Again, she met his eyes, fiery versus his luke-warm gaze. "Please, don't do that to me again, Thanatos. You didn't need to hurt me, you don't need to make me afraid of you. I chose this life and I intend on keeping to it because it was what you asked."

There was a long pause of silence before his head tilted away with a slow frown. "We have company."

She was befuddled, still engrossed in her one-sided conversation. "What?"

"Stay here."

He left the room and in seconds, she was behind him, scurrying after with sudden curiosity.

He exited the home where the skies seemed to lighten to dangerous brightness. Lana blinked furiously at the sharp exposure as she then frowned from the vision in front of her. She could have sworn that her childhood heroes of the holidays were standing right in front of her. "Is that.. Santa Claus?"

All of them looked ready to attack. Thanatos' hand raised as a scythe formed silently, its gigantic curved blade frightening to look at. "Who dares to trespass?"

"We've come to stop you!" North called out. "You who brings unnecessary death! We found your… home and intend on keeping you here until it stops!"

"Really?" Thanatos began to walk toward them, as all of them took several, obvious steps back in growing fright. "You who fears Death, as you…"

"It's not him!"

Thanatos found Lana rushing forward. "I'm with him nearly all the time and I have experienced his works! He may be cruel but he is not unnecessary."

"Who are you?" Jack poked her with his staff cautiously. "You're too.. Alive to be dead."

"I am dead, trust me," Lana said with a droll sniff. "I'm one of his… minions, so to speak."

"With.. Him? You live here, with him?" Jack asked skeptically.

"Ah, yes, the Guardian of Fun. I had come for your death only to be told to leave you be," Thanatos quipped, getting behind Lana. "Your soul lay in unrest for so long, it was no wonder you sought to be seen."

Jack glowered at him.

"Look!" Lana began, imploring to North. "It's not him. I swear on my life that it's not!"

"You're dead, so what does it matter to us if you swear on your life?" Bunny growled.

"Because I'm being honest and you can tell that," Lana protested. "What's your deal?"

Thanatos stepped forward again and once more, all of them stepped back. Lana looked up to see Thanatos' eyes darken with emotion as she moved to stand in front of him, looking to the Guardians with complete and undivided attention.

"You fear the wrong thing," She told them all softly. "As I said, he may be cruel but he has been doing his job for as long as Death has existed. How dare you come here and accuse him of performing unnecessary deaths? There must be someone else who is doing it!"

"Yea, maybe you," Jack again poked at her.

"There has been unnecessary deaths," Thanatos said slowly, looking up with a reflective gaze. "There is a minion out there, not of my doing. It feels.. As if you, Lana."

"Me, but I didn't…!"

His hand raised slowly. "No, not intentional. It is a spirit in rage, stirred by you. However, as you have given those of the dying a death of calm serenity, I don't see how you could have created such an angry spirit."

Helene suddenly surfaced in her memory. "Helene."

"No one returns from limbo, Lana. Ever."

"But.."

"It's not her, she is gone!" He snapped very loudly.

Lana dropped her gaze, tears falling.

"Leave. This is our business now. Leave, now, before I make you leave." Thanatos turned away and began to walk with a heavy step.

Jack made a face at his back as Lana slowly reached for her sister's necklace. She turned toward Jack and her blue-gray markings turned a bright red for a few moments before turning blue-gray again.

"Get out of here," She bit out and turned away.

"Is unnecessary death that needs to be stopped!" North told her as she started to leave the group.

"Then go find the one who is doing it and take it out yourselves, if you are so intrigued about it. Or better yet, seem to think you can do what Death does if you think you can come here and bitch about it!" She ended on a shout.

For a long moment, she saw herself as her twin sister, vibrant, emotional, loud. Lana rarely shouted but that day, she just seemed as if unable to not to raise her voice. She resumed walking away, hurrying to avoid any more words stemming from the group.

The guardians stood in the dimming light. "Should leave before the darkness takes out everything and we wander forever," Jack muttered as he tapped the ground and flipped around, walking off with a swagger.

"That's it? That was Death?" Tooth was skeptical. "Didn't seem like such a… scary bad guy. Just scary."

"We not dwell with Death," North shrugged. "Perhaps our impressions are wrong."

Bunny was rubbing his arms. "Still freaking scary, though, to be this close.."

"Aww, is the wittle bunny-wunny scared?" Jack cooed to Bunny who ran after the laughing boy with a shout of rage.

Lana reached the front entrance and stilled, her hand only inches from the doorknob. She thought of her sister suddenly, not too sure that she was truly in limbo. Maybe she was trying to tell her something in that dream she had. She then slowly opened the door, wanting to talk to someone and knowing that she had no one to do so with.

She came to the living room, the fireplace roaring as Thanatos stood in front, looking into the bright orange flames with a blank gaze. Lana wanted to hug him, to make him feel better but there was no way he'd let her that close to her. He wouldn't even let her be a few feet from her, so fearful did he seem about being touched.

Still, she slowly inched toward him from the side, trying to get his attention without having to actually speak up. Finally, however, she had no choice. "Thanatos?"

"It's gone. I cannot feel it anymore."

"What's gone?"

Thanatos gave her a side look. "The angry spirit."

"Is is.. Gone forever?"

"No. I simply cannot feel it anymore. It feels very much like you."

He turned suddenly, startling her as he raised a hand. She felt her markings begin to burn as she took several hard steps back. "Hey, wait, we talked about this! You don't have to hurt me!"

"I'm not going to."

"Really? This feels like how it started before! Only in slow motion! If you're going to do it, at least make it quick!"

His hand twisted, curling his fingers as she felt a tug and nothing more. His frown grew as he repeated this action several times before giving up. "Where did you go?"

"Uh.. I was just out there with you."

"Before, when you disappeared from my power."

"Oh… the Beyond, you know. The three Fates?"

"You… saw them?"

"Yea, talked to them too."

His eyes narrowed. "This is their magic, then."

"Magic?"

"I cannot remove you."

Her gaze became conflicted. "You.. You were trying to get rid of me?"

"Not.. Like that," He grew flustered. "I.."

"You were trying to get rid of me?! What about all that I said, did that mean nothing to you?!" Her markings flared red and stayed that color as she stared at him, aghast.

When he didn't say anything, she turned away sharply. "Going to bed. Not hungry. Good night… Master," She added, brutally harsh as she disappeared from the room.

Thanatos rubbed the back of his head, looking a little strained. "Wasn't trying to get rid of her. Seeing if I had full control… I do not…but she doesn't know. What have the Fates done to her?"

He turned to the fireplace once more, looking into the flames until the blaze, heat, and dueling colors took over his mind, allowing him some time to close off everything, if only for a little while.


End file.
